Among electric vehicles are, for example, an electric vehicle (EV) having a travel motor (electric motor) as a drive device, and a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) equipped with a travel motor and an engine as control devices. Some of the travel motors provided in these electric vehicles are configured to generate a driving force for running the electric vehicle by electric power supplied from the battery and, during deceleration, for example, act as a power generator to generate a regenerative braking force.
The current electric vehicle executes power running control for increasing the driving force of the travel motor in accordance with an increase in the amount of depression (depression amount) of the accelerator pedal when the accelerator pedal is stepped on (depressed), but exercises regeneration control for generating a regenerative braking force when the depression of the accelerator pedal is released during deceleration, namely, when the accelerator pedal is in a fully closed state.
Generally, the electric vehicle can be stopped by a driver stepping on (depressing) a brake pedal. Recent years, however, have seen an electric vehicle capable of so-called one pedal driving which enables the vehicle to be stopped merely by adjusting the depression amount of the accelerator pedal without the need for the driver to depress the brake pedal.
There is also an electric vehicle designed to enhance the operability of the accelerator pedal by a driver, namely, the vehicle configured to exercise ordinary power running control when the driver depresses the accelerator pedal, but to perform power running control, regeneration control, and coasting control taking an inertial travel (coasting) into consideration, as appropriate, in accordance with the depression amount of the accelerator pedal when the depression amount is to be decreased (see, for example, Patent Document 1).